If you are a Mets fan, you know that David Wright is still with team, or that Jose Reyes and Carlos Beltran are in Toronto and St. Louis, respectively. But what happened to guys like Nick Evans or Rod Barajas? We have the answers.

11 Players who made it into a game in 2010 with the Mets, are still employed by the team. That would be the aforementioned David Wright, Ike Davis, Ruben Tejada (Although he is currently with Triple-A Las Vegas, he is still on the Mets payroll), Lucas Duda, Justin Turner, Jon Niese, Pedro Feliciano (Although he made another stop in the Bronx, he is with the Mets once again), Bobby Parnell, Dillon Gee, Johan Santana, and Jenrry Mejia.

10 players are employed by another Major League team. That would be Jose Reyes, Angel Pagan, Beltran, Josh Thole, Henry Blanco, Joaquin Arias, Mike Pelfrey, R.A. Dickey, Francisco Rodriguez, and Oliver Perez.

As you may know, Jose Reyes was traded from the Miami Marlins to the Toronto Blue Jays this past offseason in a blockbuster deal involving Josh Johnson, Mark Buehrle, and now former Met, John Buck. Reyes now puts on his uniform in the same locker room as R.A. Dickey and Josh Thole, who were traded together this past offseason from the Mets for Travis d’Arnaud, Buck, and Noah Syndergaard (don’t forget Wuilmer Beccera!). Angel Pagan was traded to the San Francisco Giants prior to the 2012 season for outfielder Andres Torres and pitcher Ramon Ramirez who have both since played again for the team they were traded from.

Carlos Beltran was traded at the deadline in 2011 to the Giants for Zack Wheeler, but has since made his home in St. Louis playing for the Cardinals, where he has enjoyed a couple of very nice seasons, including an All Star appearance this summer. Henry Blanco, who served as the Mets backup catcher in 2010, beat out Josh Thole for the same position on this year’s Toronto Blue Jays team, but was released and then signed by the Seattle Mariners who made the corresponding move by releasing 2012 Met alumni, Kelly Shoppach. Blanco played in Arizona for the Diamondbacks in 2011 and 2012.

Joaquin Arias, of whom the Mets received for Jeff Francoeur late in the 2010 season, played for the Kansas City Royals in 2011, and was then given a championship ring after serving as Pablo Sandoval‘s ninth inning defensive replacement in 2012 for the San Francisco Giants. He has been a key hitter off the bench for the Giants in 2013. Mike Pelfrey, after failing to play a month in the 2012 season, was signed by the Minnesota Twins, where his 5-10 record and 5.06 ERA is good enough to keep him in the starting rotation.

Francisco Rodriguez was traded to the Brewers in 2011 for Daniel Herrera (yes the 5-6 guy) and a minor leaguer, but was traded to the Baltimore Orioles at the deadline this year, downgrading from a closer to a setup man. Finally, Oliver Perez signed a two-year deal with the Seattle Mariners in 2012 and is proving to be an effective arm out of their bullpen. You would think that Perez’s ERA of 9.72 with Henry Blanco behind the plate would be the highest among catchers who have caught the Mexican native, but no. That award goes to Josh Thole, who provides Ollie with a sparkling 16.20 ERA.

Eight players are in the minor leagues with another organization. They are Mike Nickeas, Mike Hessman, Luis Hernandez, Mike Jacobs, Nick Evans, Hisanori Takahashi, Fernando Nieve, and Pat Misch.

Mike Nickeas, who was in the same deal that sent R.A. Dickey north of the border, is currently with the Blue Jays Triple-A team, the Buffalo Bisons, a team Nickeas has played for many times when they were the Mets affiliate. Nickeas has failed to make the Majors this season, playing 55 games in Buffalo. Mike Hessman, who is seven home runs shy of 400 for his minor league career and one shy of 15 for his Major League career, is currently a member of the Louisville Bats, the Triple-A team of the Cincinnati Reds, where he is teammates with base stealing extraordinaire, Billy Hamilton. Hessman played in Japan in 2011 for the Orix Buffaloes, and was with the Astros Triple A team in 2012.

Luis Hernandez, who played all of 17 games for the Mets, is with the Indians Triple-A team, after playing in the Texas Rangers organization in 2012. Nick Evans is the only 2010 Met alumni playing in Double-A. Evans, who is a member of the Arizona Diamondbacks affiliated Mobile Baybears, was a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates organization in 2012. Mike Jacobs was the placeholder at first base until Ike Davis came up in 2010 but he is now with the Diamondbacks Triple-A team. Jacobs also stopped in Colorado Springs, Toronto, and Mexico. Hisanori Takahashi, who has 12 games started and 21 games finished as a Met, has played in the Majors with the Angels, Pirates, and Cubs. He is now a member of the Colorado Rockies Triple-A team. Fernando Nieve hasn’t played in the Majors since 2010, but he has played with the Astros, Dodgers, Indians, and currently the Athletics, all in Triple-A. Finally, Pat MIsch has seen time with the Phillies and Tigers Triple-A teams.

Five players are not currently with a Major League organization. The names are Jeff Francoeur, Rod Barajas, Jason Bay, John Maine, and Sean Green.

Francoeur was traded to the Rangers for Joaquin Arias in August of 2010. He spent the rest of the year there. Frenchy played in Kansas City during 2011 and 2012, but was released midway through the 2013 season. The Giants picked him up, where he played 22 games. Francouer was designated for assignment of August 20th, and released two days later. Barajas played with the Pirates in 2011 and 2012, before being signed by the Diamondbacks. He ultimately lost the bid to be Miguel Montero‘s backup, as the DBacks went with Wil Nieves instead.

Jason Bay, who was released after the 2012 season much to the delight of Mets fans, was signed by the Mariners for the 2013 season. He hit a home run in his first spring training at bat, but after a disapointing season, was released of August 6th to make room for Mike Morse. John Maine spent 2011 in the Colorado Rockies minor league system, and pitched for the Scranton/Wilkes-Bare Yankees for all of 2012. He played for the Miami Marlins in April of this year, but was released on April 22. The sidearmer, Sean Green pitched with the Brewers in 2011, before playing with the Texas Rangers’ Triple A team in 2012. He also pitched with the Somerset Patriots in 2012 of the Independent Leagues but has not found a team since.

Six players have officially retired. They are Luis Castillo, Alex Cora, Fernando Tatis, Gary Matthews Jr., Frank Catalanotto, and Tobi Stoner.

Luis Castillo was released by the Mets at the same time they released Oliver Perez. Castillo signed a minor league contract with the Philadelphia Phillies, but after a disappointing spring training, he was released, at which time he retired. Alex Cora was released by the Mets in August of 2010, and he played the rest of the year with the Rangers. He played with the Washington Nationals in 2011, and was signed by the Cardinals in the spring of 2012, which didn’t work out. He is now a baseball analyst for ESPN (his brother Joey does the same work for MLB Network). Fernando Tatis was injured of July 4th of 2010. He was placed on the DL the next day and was transferred to the 60-day DL 10 days later. That turned out to be his last major league game as he retired after the season.

The “Son of the Sarge”, Gary Matthews Jr., was released by the Mets on June 15th, 2010. He signed with the Reds on June 24th and played the rest of the year with their Triple-A team, before retiring. Frank Catalanotto was designated for assignment of May 10th, when the Mets brought up Chris Carter. After failing to sign with another team, he retired in March of 2011. Finally, the German-born Tobi Stoner was released by the Mets in March of 2012. During that season, he played in the Independent Leagues with the Bridgeport Blue Fish and the Somerset Patriots. He retired before the 2013 season.

Four players are currently playing in foreign countries. Chris Carter, Manny Acosta, and Ryota Igarashi are playing in Japan, and Jesus Feliciano is playing in Mexico.

Carter (no not the former A’s prospect) played in the Tampa Bay Rays and Atlanta Braves Minor League system in 2011 before moving to Japan to play with the Seibu Lions in 2012 and 2013. Carter is 3-26 (.115) with three RBI in nine games this year. He is teammates with Kazuhisa Ishii. Manny Acosta pitched for the Mets through 2012 but signed with the Yomuri Giants in 2013 after being released. In 14 games he has an ERA of 5.54. His teammates include former major leaguers Scott Mathieson and John Bowker.

Ryota Igarashi played with the Mets until 2011. He then played in the minor leagues with the Yankees and the Blue Jays in 2012 though he pitched in the majors with both teams. He is now pitching with the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks where he sports a 2.15 ERA in 36 games. He is teammates with with Vicente Padilla and former Mets minor leaguer Wily Mo Pena. Jesus Feliciano, who has signed with the Mets four different times in his career, played in all of his 54 career games with the Mets in 2010. He played with the Buffalo Bisons in 2011, the Durham Bulls in 2012, and he is now playing in Mexico with the Rojos del Aguila de Veracruz. He has only played in three games with one hit.

One player is currently a coach. Elmer Dessens is the assistant pitching coach for the AZL Reds in the Arizona League (The Arizona equivalent to Florida’s Gulf Coast League). And here’s a fun piece of information. The manager of that AZL Reds team is former Met, Eli Marrero who the Mets received in 2006 when they traded Kazuo Matsui to the Rockies.

Well, now you know what happened to the 2010 Mets. Next week we’ll look at the players from Citi Field’s inaugural year, 2009.

LGM

The post The 2010 Mets: Where Are They Now? appeared first on Metsmerized.

Why Is Chin-Lung Hu Here?

Mets backup middle infielder Chin-Lung Hu has just been absolutely dreadful to start this season. I see no reason why the 27-year old Taiwanese native is on the major league staff except to crack the cheap “Hu’s on first?” joke on the rare occasion he makes it to first base.

Hu is batting an almost laughable .056 with one mere hit, three walks, two runs and an RBI in 19 games, mostly pinch hitting. The worst part is, is that in his 18 official at-bats, Hu has struck out an abysmal 11 times. I would rather have a relief pitcher pinch hitting than Hu; the Mets would probably get a better result.

The Mets need to cut Hu and bring up Luis Hernandez, who was one of the final candidate for the starting 2B job during Spring Training earlier this year. Hernandez has struggled so far this year in Triple-A Buffalo batting .192 in 23 games. Despite his underwhelming performance in the minors so far, the middle infielder should get the call. But who knows? Jason Pridie was having a bad start in Buffalo, and now is hitting .300 in the majors. Hernandez ripped the cover off the ball this Spring and deserved to break camp with the Mets. He showed in 2010 he can be a decent backup in 2010 before going down with a broken foot after hitting a Kirk Gibson-esq home run last season.

The only other reason I can think of why Hernandez is not in the majors is because Alderson is still following the rules he laid down in Oakland: No player moves up unless they average at least one walk per 10 at-bats. Hernandez currently has three walks in 78 at-bats.

It is a nice sentiment trying to get players to walk more, but if this is what Alderson is doing, in this case, it is hurting the ballclub having Hu here.

Who’s on first? Not Hu, thats for sure.

Happy commenting!

The post Morning Grind: Why Is Hu Here Instead Of Luis Hernandez? appeared first on Metsmerized.

Pat Misch and Luis Hernandez also cleared waivers.

Original Post 3/28

This just in from Adam Rubin of ESPN New York:

The Mets placed Nick Evans, Luis Hernandez and Pat Misch on waivers Monday, according to a baseball official who was not authorized to speak publicly because the process is secretive.

The results of the waiver process should be known Wednesday.

Manny Acosta is the lone Met in a tenuous position who is out of options and may not have been placed on waivers Monday, according to the source. Acosta seemingly is the third combatant in the battle with Blaine Boyer and Jason Isringhausen for one relief spot.

The Padres had appeared interested in Hernandez via trade, but reportedly just acquired Alberto Gonzalez from Washington instead.

I thought for sure the Mets would figure out a way to somehow keep Evans and Misch, but it looks like they’ll be toiling for another team. It’s looking like Manny Acosta could suffer the same fate.

This would mean Daniel Murphy is officialy on the 25 man roster, and that the last bullpen spot is now down to Blaine Boyer or Jason isringhausen.

Earlier today, one of the beat writers said via Twitter that Boyer was summoned into the managers office. It could have something to do with his status with the team, or Collins simply could have wanted directions to a good hamburger joint.

The post Evans, Misch and Hernandez Clear Waivers appeared first on Metsmerized.

That’s a lot of warm bodies, so this next round will leave plenty for us to discuss.

Lets do some math…

Currently there are 45 players in major league camp, including 12 non-roster invitees. Here is the
breakdown.

• Pitchers – 22 total (seven non-roster)
• Catchers – 5 total (two non-roster)
• Infielders – 10 total (one non-roster)
• Outfielders – 8 total (two non-roster)

A little bird told me that Luis Hernandez is hurtin’ and the Mets will place him on the DL. Lets see if the little bird’s chirps ring true.

By the way, my workload is about to triple on my job and I will no longer be able to keep up this vigorous pace. It’s been a lot of fun, and I’ve enjoyed interacting with all of you. Thank you. If you are a Mets news hound like me, and this is something you would like to do, I encourage you to contact the site.

Original Post 1:30 PM

Adam Rubin via Twitter,

Think Sandy Alderson has got it easy?

Out Of Options
The following players have less than five years of service time and are out of options, meaning that they must first clear waivers before being sent to the minors.

Nick Evans
Chin-lung Hu
Luis Hernandez
Pat Misch
Taylor Buchholz
Manny Acosta

Non-roster Invitations
This is a list of players who received spring invitations, but are not on the 40-man roster. If any of them make the team, the Mets must make a corresponding move and release someone to make room for them.

Pitchers (7)
Boof Bonser
Blaine Boyer
Tim Byrdak 
Ryota Igarashi
Jason Isringhausen
Mike O’Connor
Taylor Tankersley

Catchers (2)
Raul Chavez
Dusty Ryan

Infielders (1)
Russ Adams

Outfielders (2)
Willie Harris
Jason Pridie

I still believe that Buccholz and Isringhausen ae locks. I wonder if the second base field gets hacked down to 2-3 players down from 5 and I wonder who survives and who will be chopped?

The post Alderson Says 8-9 Players Will Be Cut By Weekend appeared first on Metsmerized.

Reports surfaced earlier this week that Collins wanted Luis Hernandez to be the Mets starter at second base. However, those reports were quickly shot down and might have only been done to light a fire under the other candidates.

Today we learned that Daniel Murphy is likely out of the competition and will be used more as a super-utility player. If that’s the case, at least Murphy should have a spot on the team.

That being said, Murphy is starting to today at second base, so it begs the question of whether or not he’s really still in the competition.

Since all along Collins and Sandy Alderson have been saying that they want second base to be an offensive position, why on earth would they settle for Hernandez?

Hernandez is a .245 career hitter who’s played for three different teams. Maybe the Mets are hoping this Hernandez hits like Keith? That’s unlikely.

Hernandez has looked decent at the plate so far this spring but in limited action. He’ll be starting at shortstop today.

He’s out of options, so he would have to clear waivers before being sent to Buffalo. Most likely, another team in need of middle infield depth would pick him up. However, would that be the worst thing that happens?

The Mets have other players out of options, most notably Nick Evans. I would rather see the team keep Evans as a bench player than have Hernandez as the starting second baseman.

If Collins and Alderson are true to their word, Murphy is the answer at second base. Unfortunately, Murphy hasn’t had enough chances in the field, especially on double plays, to show he is ready.

Murphy has six doubles this spring and has driven in seven runs. He would be a nice compliment to the back end of the Mets lineup.

I was at first worried that if Murphy was the starter at second, the bottom of the order would be chock full of lefties. Murphy, Ike Davis and Josh Thole all bat left-handed.

However, if the Mets were to face a tough left hander, Ronny Paulino could get a start behind the dish, and Chin-lung Hu, not Brad Emaus, could slide in at second.

That’s right: Chin-lung Hu. Hu could also be a late defensive replacement for Murphy.

Though Hu has swung the bat well this spring, Hu/Murphy would by no means be a platoon. I guess it would be a defensive platoon if such a thing existed.

Murphy would start and hopefully get a few hits and drive in some runs. If the game is close late, Collins would insert Hu defensively to sure up the middle infield, especially if a double play is necessary.

If this was the case, the following would all have to occur. Emaus gets sent back to Toronto; Luis Castillo gets released; Luis Hernandez is either picked up by another team or sent to Buffalo; Justin Turner appears destined for Buffalo anyway since he has options left; the Mets would likely have to carry Nick Evans to provide some right-handed punch off the bench because they wouldn’t get that from Hu.

The speculation will continue to evolve in the coming days about which player or combination of players will man second base. What I presented combines the Mets best offensive and defensive player.

In a perfect world, this could work great. However, what if the Mets are in a tie ballgame in the fifth inning and the opposing team has the bases loaded with one out. A slow chopper is hit out to Jose Reyes who flips to Murphy, who then botches the double play, which allows two runs to score and keeps the inning alive. The Mets fall behind which usually spells their fate.

It’s a tough call either way, so I’m glad I’m not the one making the decision. I definitely don’t think Hernandez is the answer, but other than that it’s really just a guessing game until we find out who is.

Maybe Murphy’s Irish luck will allow him to open some eyes today during St. Patrick’s Day.

Follow me on Twitter@JMMancari.

The post Do Mets Have A Better Option Than Luis Hernandez appeared first on Metsmerized.

Disenchanted with what he has seen from Luis Castillo, Daniel Murphy, Brad Emaus and Justin Turner this spring, manager Terry Collins is preparing to name Luis Hernandez the starter at second base, a source with direct knowledge of Collins’ plans told The Post yesterday. The move will be contingent upon Collins convincing the front office to find roster space for Hernandez.

You may remember that just three days ago in this post, I wrote about Collins’ demeanor and body language when he was asked about the second base situation by reporters.

Collins tapped his foot and paused six seconds when asked if even giving Hernandez remote consideration signaled displeasure with the original second-base combatants.

The manager eventually replied: “I don’t know if I’ve added him. I think we forgot that he could play there because he has been unable to play there early in camp. … I’m still looking at the primary four guys, but I just know we’ve got another guy who can play there.”

As a matter of fact I wondered who he was referring to at the time… Some of the readers thought it might be Reese Havens, but who would of believed it would be 26-year old Luis Hernandez?

Puma said Collins came to this decision mostly because the primary contenders for second base did nothing to distinguish themselves at the plate or in the field or both.

Last night, Adam Rubin wrote that “there are rumblings around baseball that Terry Collins is firmly in the not-Luis Castillo camp for second base”. He also quoted a rival executive who told him that Castillo won’t see Opening Day in Miami. “I think he will be out before spring training ends,” the person said.

Hernandez only entered the second base picture after Collins brought his name up after the three error game by the Mets on Saturday. Two of those errors were by Daniel Murphy, the other by Chin-leng Hu.

What is odd about the whole situation is that for weeks Collins has stated that he saw second base as an offensive position, which many believed was a vote for Daniel Murphy. Hernandez is far from an offensive type and has always profiled as a utility infielder. In parts of four seasons he is a career .245 hitter and previously played for the Orioles and Royals. He is having a solid spring batting .417, but only has 12 at bats.

Truth be told, Castillo is having the best spring out of all the candidates, so clearly this is a signal that Collins wants nothing to do with him.

Rule 5 pick Brad Emaus was supposed to be the favorite, but he has underwhelmed at the plate and looked shoddy in the field.

Ruben Tejada, their best defensive second baseman, has already been dispatched to the minors.

This seems so uncoordinated to me and I don’t like the smell of it. I would even go as far as saying that it looks a little like desperation on the part of Terry Collins.

Furthermore, we haven’t heard a peep from Alderson on this yet, who might very well insist that Collins plays his guy, Brad Emaus.

It’s most likely that we haven’t heard the last on this. But at least we’re not talking about Oliver Perez this morning.

The post Luis Hernandez To Be Named Starter At Second Base? Is Desperation Setting In? appeared first on Metsmerized.

Updated Post 1/24 3:30 PM

Anthony DiComo answered some questions in this weeks mailbag feature for Mets.com. He had some interesting things to say about Mets players who are out of options.

Quite a few young Mets are out of options, actually, which should make for some interesting Spring Training competitions. Though the team recently signed Scott Hairston and Willie Harris to compete for backup outfield spots, fellow outfielders Nick Evans and Jason Pridie are out of options — meaning if they don’t make the club, New York must expose them to other teams through the waiver process. Though both are Collins favorites, their days with the Mets may be numbered.

Also out of options are middle infielders Luis Hernandez and Chin-lung Hu. There isn’t room on the roster for both of them, meaning whoever loses the Spring Training competition may need to seek employment elsewhere. And the fact that those two are out of options does not bode well for the chances of Justin Turner — who does have remaining options — making the team.

In the bullpen, Manny Acosta is out of options, making him a strong candidate to earn a spot. Same goes for Pat Misch, who would be first in line should Collins feel inclined to break camp with a long reliever.

It would be a shame to lose Evans before we ever got a real chance to see what he can do at the major league level. As for Acosta and Misch, I don’t know where they would fit in given the additions of Taylor Buchholz, Taylor Tankersley, Chris Capuano and Tim Byrdak. Minor leaguer Mike O’Connor will also be competing for a job in the bullpen as well.

Original Post 1/20 6:00 PM

The Mets have announced that outfielder Jason Pridie and starting pitcher Tobi Stoner have been designated for assignment.

These moves were made to make room on the roster for newly signed Chris Young and Scott Hairston.

Stoner, 26, has appeared in five games for the Mets.  In 11 1/3 innings pitched he has a 3.97 ERA with a 1.412 WHIP.

Pridie, 27, has played in 11 Major League games for the Minnesota Twins.  The outfielder has yet to get a Major League hit.

I had been saying that Pridie would get cut all along, but I was a little surprised they cut Stoner instead of Luis Hernandez, reason being that the Mets protected Tobi Stoner from the Rule 5 Draft.

At least we can now put the Luis Castillo rumors to bed.

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